Lent

Last night was our church's Ash Wednesday service. It is one of our favorite services. We usually have a Mardi Gras themed dinner and a jazz service. This year was bit different. The meal was fabulous!! Jambalaya, Dirty rice, Red beans, and bread pudding!!! So yummy!! K really enjoyed the Jambalya!! We had a wonderful dinner surrounded by our family. C's mom was able to join us and that made the meal even more perfect. It is always a joy to see K having a good time with his grandparents. C and I both have had close relationships with our grandparents and we pray that K has a very close relationship with his.
Due to a tighter budget, we did not have the jazz band that we usually have. Instead, we had a drama skit about sacrifices. Guess who was in it!! Me and C!! It was C's acting debut and he did fabulous!! He ad-libbed a few lines perfectly. I was impressed with my man!! The most touching part of the service is when the pastors put the ash crosses on our foreheads. We have made it a point to have K with us during certain traditions in church. When we have Communion, C goes and gets him so that K can take Communion. It warms my spirit to see K picking up on how we do certain things. He is still working on holding out his hands to receive bread but he really like the juice!! We took him forward with us to receive ashes. After we got our ashes, we go and paint a cross for each of us on banners. What is really cool is that previously in the service, we wrote on a card what we were giving up for Lent. The ushers collected the papers and took them outside and burned them into ashes. These ashes are then mixed in with the black paint we use to make our crosses on the banners. These banners will hang in the Sanctuary for the Lenten season. It is a joy to look up every Sunday and see the three crosses that represent our family!
So, what did I give up for Lent? I gave up the word "No". I seriously feel like that word is overused in my daily vocabulary. Plus, it seems to be K's favorite word. I am consciously aware of how much he learns from us, whether we want him to or not!! So far, it has been hard. I am having to make a conscious effort to think before I speak (hard for me to do!) I feel like this is something that I will not be able to do on my own, like give up chocolate or something. It is seriously a problem that I will need His help with!! Grant me patience and words of love, Lord!